


How Far We've Come

by fembuck



Series: The Nun's Nest [10]
Category: Warrior Nun (TV)
Genre: F/F, Femslash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:13:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26087008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fembuck/pseuds/fembuck
Summary: Ava’s recent training is put to the test.
Relationships: Sister Beatrice/Ava Silva
Series: The Nun's Nest [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1824703
Comments: 21
Kudos: 333





	How Far We've Come

***

**T** he sky glowed warmly above the hills as the sun began to retire for the night. Ava strolled through the scenic landscape that surrounded the farmhouse, lazily kicking loose stones as she walked. Every once in a while she would sweep her eyes appraisingly around her, keeping her eyes open for good possible picnic spots, and, of course, also to be safe since she was very much being hunted by a demon-ass lil bitch who would rip the halo out of her without a thought if he got a hold of her.

_Oooh_ , Ava thought she spotted a suitable grassy patch of land underneath an olive tree that provided a decent amount of shade. She stood still for a moment, a dopey smile spreading across her lips as she imagined laying under the tree with Beatrice, Beatrice’s beautiful dark hair hanging down and loose around her shoulders, fluttering slightly in the breeze as Beatrice gazed at her warmly and smiled. 

Suddenly, Ava’s body grew tense.

Something was different.

The air had shifted.

Someone … something, was moving towards her, quickly.

Very quickly.

Immediately, Ava phased.

A moment later, a bullet passed harmlessly through her spectral form.

Still incorporeal, Ava turned in the direction the shot had come from as a bullet and then another passed harmlessly through her. 

Ava’s head snapped to the left, her eyes focusing on an outcropping rocks where … yes, movement.

The shooter was using the rocks as cover.

_Gotcha_ , Ava thought before focusing on the outcropping intensely, picturing herself standing there, forcing herself to almost ache for it.

A second later, the air began to vibrate and ripple around her, and then she was in front of the outcropping, positioned exactly as she wanted to be. 

Ava’s hand extended outwards, and her fingers wrapped around the barrel of the shooter’s rifle. Focusing on the action, she tensed her arm and yanked, easily tearing the weapon out of the shooter’s hands.

The air shifted again.

Ava ducked under a dark pipe being swung at her head before quickly moving to block a kick, then a punch, and in quick succession a knee towards her abdomen.

Ava breathed in deeply and thought, Let’s make this a slow dance, before releasing her breath. The light of the halo grew brighter under Ava’s osnium lined vest as the air around her became denser, heavier, slowing down the movement of everything around her. Her opponents looked like they were moving on a planet with twice the gravity of Earth, but Ava was still able to move normally, providing her with the time she needed to block and repel the blows that otherwise would otherwise have been raining down on her mercilessly.

A streak of colour.

Ava danced out of the way of the newest kick aimed her way, and extended her hand. A wave of light erupted from her, rippling through air in the direction of the movement she had detected. A blink of an eye later, a figure was lifted off of their feet and thrown backwards into some brush.

A scent in the air. 

_Mine_ , Ava’s mind growled.

A moment later she had portaled, placing herself between the two attackers north of her position and the person she had scented moving towards her from the south.

Ava grinned at the two attackers walking towards her from the north. She crooked her fingers at them cockily, tauntingly calling them towards her. The action was met by two sneers of disdain, and then the attackers shared a look before breaking out into runs, one moving left and the other moving right so that Ava found herself being attacked on two fronts, needing to lean back, out of the way of a shotgun barrel flying towards her head, while blocking a razor-tipped hand strike that had been aimed at her neck.

Click.

That sound again.

Ava pictured Beatrice in her mind and reached out for her with her soul, freeing the halo to bring her to her lover, her arms immediately wrapping around Beatrice the moment Ava was corporeal again. Seconds later, the halo flashed brighter, and when the bullet neared their position it flattened in the air, the energy of the halo having formed an invisible shield around them.

Crunching. Feet. Close.

Ava shifted, sweeping Beatrice up into her arms like a bride, and then tilted her head up towards the darkening sky. 

She and Beatrice began to levitate, lifting easily into the air.

As Beatrice’s arms tightened around her neck, grasping onto Ava with a fearful desperation, Ava then looked down and observed the scene below them. For a moment the attackers simply stood there, gawking, but after exchanging a quick glance they exchanged shrugs and the attacker on the left lifted their shotgun and pointed it at Ava and Beatrice.

Click.

The halo flashed and Ava and Beatrice blinked out of the sight, suddenly blanketing the hillside in darkness.

“Well,” Lilith sighed, still staring up at the spot where Ava and Beatrice had been hovering. “I never thought this day would come.”

“What day?” Mary asked curiously, turning to face Lilith.

“The day where I would be genuinely impressed by Ava,” Lilith replied, shaking her head from side to side, drawing a laugh from Mary.

To their left, a circle of light appeared in the darkness, and then the sound of feet moving towards them filled the air.

“Still in one piece?” Mary called out towards the bobbing flashlight.

“Next time one of you can fire the paint guns,” Camila complained as she trudged closer to them. 

Watching Ava fling mercenaries around like rag-dolls was fun. Being the rag-doll Ava flung around was far less entertaining, however.

“Rock, paper, scissors?” Mary asked wryly, looking over at Lilith as Camila reached them and started stretching out her back, groaning dramatically at the relief it gave her aching muscles.

“How about a big girl race to the farmhouse instead?” Lilith replied challengingly, her dark eyes sparkling in the faint moonlight. 

“Deal,” Mary said without hesitation, knowing from previous experience that she was faster than Lilith. “Camila,” Mary said, turning to the youngest Sister. “Count us down?”

Camila turned towards Mary and Lilith, smiling gamely.

“Five,” she began as Mary and Lilith got into the best position to take off from. “Four... three...two...one!”

Mary and Lilith took off at virtually the same time, literally kicking up dust that forced Camila to turn her head to the side and shut her eyes for a moment to avoid getting an eyeball full of dirt. When she was able to focus again, she could just make out a dark Mary shaped figure in front of a Lilith shaped dark blur.

Grumbling a little because she was gonna have to walk back to the farmhouse in the dark, by herself, she was surprised when the hills were lit by a flickering red light for a moment before darkness crashed back around her again.

“Son of a bitch!” Camila heard Mary yell, and straining her eyes as she pointed her flashlight towards the sound of Mary’s voice, Camila was able to determine that Lilith was no longer on the path back to the farmhouse.

She had portaled.

_Woo!_ Camila thought, pumping her arm up into the air excitedly before wincing. Her muscles still hurt, which sucked, but at least I’ll have company for the walk now, she thought, smiling as she quickened her step, jogging to catch up to Mary who was now walking in the direction of the farmhouse as she swore under her breath.

* * *

“ **Y** ou did well tonight,” Beatrice said proudly, smiling as she closed the door to their bedroom.

“Even Mother Superion was impressed,” Ava agreed giddily, grinning and wiggling her eyebrows as she looked over her shoulder at Beatrice. “In large part due to the skill and planning of the video director,” she continued, twirling around so that she was facing Beatrice before she started clapping.

She’d kind of ruined the drone footage Beatrice had been recording when she’d portaled over to her and then grabbed her, not to mention when she leviated them into the air. However, luckily, miraculously, Beatrice had managed to hold onto the controller as Ava shot up into the air, and she had managed to safely pilot the drone back to the farmhouse once they’d materialized again.

Beatrice gave the most elegant courtesy Ava had ever seen in response, and Ava’s smile brightened even more.

“You’re so classy,” Ava breathed out as she flopped down onto their bed in a decidedly unclassy way.

“More like well-trained,” Beatrice observed deprecatingly, before she flopped down onto the bed beside Ava.

“No,” Ava said, rolling onto her side to face Beatrice. “Classy,” she stated firmly, feeling a now familiar desire to portal to Beatrice’s parents house and halo bomb the place into rubble as punishment for their horrendous treatment of their daughter. 

Like wraith demons they had plagued Beatrice for all of her life, sucking away her confidence and joy, among so many other things. They haunted her still, their constant criticism, lack of affection, and eventual virtual abandonment of her having wounded Beatrice so deeply, and profoundly, that Beatrice still found it difficult to expect consideration from others, to completely accept compliments and praise, even when they came from the woman who loved her. 

“And smart,” Ava continued, drawing her attention back to Beatrice where it belonged instead of focusing on her deadbeat, cold-hearted, joy-sucking parents. “And thoughtful. Observant, determined.” Ava stroked Beatrice’s face tenderly, reverently as she continued. “Creative, inspiring, loving ... beautiful,” Ava whispered, looping an arm around Beatrice’s waist, hugging her to her. “Not to mention, incredibly sexy.”

“Stop,” Beatrice protested, slapping Ava on the arm lightly as her cheeks flushed.

“Why?” Ava asked, leaning into Beatrice. “You are sexy,” she husked, her breath warm and soft as it tickled Beatrice’s throat. “So sexy. All the time.” Ava nipped at Beatrice’s skin, and then kissed, and licked it, moaning softly as the taste of her. “It’s kind of inconvenient actually,” Ava went on, feeling Beatrice’s body shake against her as she laughed quietly.

“How so?” Beatrice asked, voice soft and wispy.

“My hormones are constantly amuck. Absolutely out of control,” Ava related seriously as one of Beatrice’s hands settled on her thigh, her thumbing fanning out to rub at the soft skin underneath. “Panties are ruined daily,” Ava continued, as Beatrice turned her head into the pillow beneath her, hiding her face, but not before Ava saw that she was smiling. 

“When we all went out for gelato last week, I couldn’t take my eyes off of you,” Ava went on, kissing the side of Beatrice’s face that wasn’t smooshed into the pillow. “It turns out that watching your girl eat gelato is something that can be just, really personal…” 

Beatrice's body began to shake, and started shaking her head back and forth while it was still smushed into the pillow. 

“And as I was like, honestly hyper-fixating on your tongue...licking, and swiping, and…” Ava trailed off for a second, lost in the memory. “Ahem,” Ava coughed, giving her head a little shake. “Eventually, Camila leaned across the table and was like, ‘Please, stop. Look at that plant over there or something. The energy your entire being is projecting is super porongraphic,’” Ava continued, smiling fondly at the memory. “She whispered the last word,” she added a moment later because it had been adorable and Beatrice deserved to know.

Beatrice perked up, suddenly lifting her head from its pillowy hideaway.

“Is that why she won’t sit opposite you at meals anymore?” she asked, a dark eyebrow arching inquisitively as a smile began to tug up the corners of her lips.

Realizing her mistake, Ava shrugged and muttered, “Let’s leave that unsolved mystery for Robert Stack,” which earned her a confused look from Beatrice.

“Why don’t we talk more about how awesome I was tonight, and how much Mother Superion liked what she saw on the video?” Ava suggested quickly, hoping to distract her girlfriend. 

“Remember when she was like, ‘Ava’,” Ava continued, impersonating Mother Superion by lowering her voice, and speaking slowly and precisely. “And then she nodded at me approvingly? And then she was like, ‘Very impressive.’ ‘Very’, Bea. That’s huge, right? Coming from her.”

“I didn’t know her opinion meant so much to you,” Beatrice teased, stroking Ava’s cheek.

“I’m not gonna lie,” Ava began, “I was a hater for a while. I mean, ordering Lilith to leave me stuck in a wall, accusing me of killing myself, making me cry … shockingly, it didn’t win me over. Which sucked, because my first impression of her was,” Ava paused, and lifted her hand to her mouth for a chef’s kiss. “That grizzled swagger, the scar that speaks of mystery and danger. So hot, instant fan. But then,” Ava sighed and shook her head, “she went and ruined it.” 

“Mother?” Beatrice’s eyebrow arched again. A part of her wanted to ask about how Ava and Mother Superion got back on good terms with each other, but Beatrice couldn’t resist exploring Ava’s assessment of Mother Superion a bit more. “Hot?”

“You’re joking?” Ava asked incredulously, looking aghast when Beatrice didn’t immediately see the error of her ways. “You seriously mean to tell me you’ve never, not even for a moment, looked at her and just kind of growled internally.” 

In response, Beatrice continued to stare at her with her brows lightly scrunched in confusion. 

“Oh, come on,” Ava began, a touch pleadingly. “That confidence, all of that simmering emotion and tightly wound control. That’s… it’s, it’s potent...“

“Potent what?” Beatrice prompted when Ava trailed off uncertainly.

“Alpha Bitch Energy,” Ava said desperately, still struggling to find the words to adequately describe Mother Superion’s particular form of regal, slightly menacing, hotness. “Like that ‘Your Daughter calls me Daddy too,’‘ ’‘Yes Ma’am’ Energy. That ‘I’d Let You Bend Me Over That Pew And...’”

“I get it,” Beatrice breathed out, biting down on her lip light as she shook her head a little bit. “That was very … vivid.”

“Do you also get how you all walking around obediently calling her ‘Mother’ all the time just makes it even more …?” Ava paused as her treacherous brain unhelpfully called up the memory of Camilla whispering ‘pornographic’ at the gelato shop.

“Fetishistic,” Beatrice suggested helpfully, the corner of her lip twitching up with amusement.

“That’s not ...” Ava immediately replied, before pausing thoughtfully for a moment. 

Is it? 

“It’s not a fetish,” Ava said decisively, though the crease in her brows conveyed the ‘probably’ she chose not to voice. 

“Anyone would react the same way…” she continued, trailing off as Beatrice started to shake her head.

“Any lesbisch would...” Ava tried.

Beatrice shook her head again.

“Any gay would...” Ava started tentatively, hoping for a nod.

However, Beatrice’s head still moved from side to side.

“This gay would,” Ava began cautiously, pointing at herself.

Beatrice nodded her head encouragingly, managing to keep a straight face for the first few dips of her head before a grin began to spread across her lips, her eyes alight with amusement.

“Oh my god,” Ava exclaimed a few seconds later, immediately reaching out to swat Beatrice on the arm, the action making Beatrice’s smile fully blossomed. “Have you been fucking with me the whole time?”

Beatrice then began to laugh, and Ava started to tickle her lightly in retaliation.

“Fetishistic,” Ava said mockingly as Beatrice began to bat at her hands. “You know, if you keep making me feel like a sexual deviant, I might get sensitive about it and keep my panties on. Then who's going to suffer?”

“Europe to begin with, then it’ll be a matter of the region Adriel decides to ‘liberate’ next,” Beatrice breathed out, chest heaving a little as she caught her breath now that Ava’s tickle attack had halted. “I’m your Golden Mushroom.”

Ava laughed, and then shook her head a little.

Beatrice had a point.

“You do make me glow like no one else,” Ava breathed out, “Okay, you’ve convinced me. For the sake of humanity, I promise I’ll always take my panties off for you … even when you’re being a punk,” she whispered, before leaning in to kiss Beatrice.

“Very gracious of you,” Beatrice murmured Ava, a content smile spreading across her lips as her eyes fluttered open. “I was only teasing,” she assured Ava a moment later, kissing her sweetly. “You’re very cute when you’re flustered,” she explained, “it makes it hard to resist teasing you,” she sighed before kissing Ava again, long and deep. 

“Truthfully,” Beatrice breathed out when their lips parted, taking care to look directly into Ava’s eyes as she spoke. “Mother also made a very strong impression on me when I first joined the OCS. It inspired some … particular, kinds of dreams. The kinds of dreams that led me to pray for forgiveness, a lot.”

“But not anymore?” Ava inquired softly, more focused on the last bit of what Beatrice had said rather than the sexy dream bit for the moment.

“Not anymore,” Beatrice confirmed, smiling softly as she gazed at Ava. “Despite what some people might say, I believe that our love is holy. I know it is. I will never doubt that again.”

“Mmm” Ava hummed softly, before leaning in to kiss Beatrice gently. “Good,” she sighed against Beatrice’s lips before she kissed them again, and again. “What kind of dreams?” Ava asked a moment later, a wicked glint coming into her eyes. “Kneeling in worship at her shrine of delights?” Ava speculated.

Tellingly, Beatrice’s eyes shifted away from hers, and Ava smiled.

“Or maybe you’re a, ‘Spank me Mother, for I have sinned’ kind of gal?” Ava continued silkily, lifting her eyebrows up and down suggestively for a few seconds before her eyes widened when Beatrice’s blush deepened. 

“Let’s leave that unknown mystery for Robin Mack,” Beatrice replied, attempting to parrot the response Ava had given earlier when she had wanted to change the subject, but not quite getting the details right. 

“You’re so cute,” Ava murmured, laughing a little as she smiled down at Beatrice. “Unsolved Mysteries and Robert Stack,” she explained gently a moment later. “Which we’re definitely gonna watch the heck out of when all this mayhem is over.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Beatrice replied, smiling even as she teasingly saluted Ava.

“Mmm,” Ava hummed as she considered the very pleasant reaction her body had to Beatrice calling her ‘ma’am’. “I could get used to that,” she murmured, eying Beatrice with lusty speculation. 

She’d kind of assumed that she’d be the one saying ‘Yes, Sister’ to Beatrice, but she could definitely work with this arrangement too. 

Beatrice rolled her eyes, but as always it was done so affectionately that Ava couldn’t help smiling at her.

“Why don’t you tell me how Mother managed to win you over after ruining the first ‘bomb-ass’ impression she made on you?” Beatrice asked softly, ignoring the face Ava made at her use of the term ‘bomb-ass’. She was still curious about the question she had bypassed asking earlier in order to tease Ava.

“Back in the catacombs, after you left,” Ava began shifting a little before settling into a more comfortable position against Beatrice’s side. “We kind of bonded. We had, you know, a moment. A mutual exchange of empathy. Some genuine human connection. I think we grew as people. So now, yeah, I’d like for her to not go back to thinking I’m a selfish, slacker, dimwit.”

“You were never really any of those things,” Beatrice said reassuringly. “You were just overwhelmed.” She sighed softly, shaking her head a little. “We could have been more understanding. We should have been more understanding.”

“I’m not gonna disagree with that in general, but you were understanding,” Ava said, leaning in a moment later to kiss Beatrice when she saw that Beatrice was about to dispute the statement. “At the beginning, you were the only one that didn’t make me feel like a waste of oxygen. I was lost in a vast desert of disapproving nuns, and you were this kind, thoughtful, sexy oasis,” Ava continued, laughing a little when Beatrice hid her face against Ava’s chest. “I know you had your doubts when it came to me, but it never showed in your behaviour, or how you looked at me, or spoke to me. That meant a lot.” 

“Well,” Beatrice murmured, eyes shimmering wetly with emotion as she gazed at Ava. “You’ve certainly shown any detractors what’s what,” she stated firmly, proudly.

“Almost,” Ava sighed, shifting her head against Beatrice’s chest so that it was laying over her heart. “While I now have the skills to yeet him, I haven’t, yet,” Ava noted, hugging Beatrice as she spoke.

“Not one for show yoting?” Beatrice breathed, smiling a moment later when Ava started huffing out breaths of laughter.

“Good one,” Ava murmured, pressing a kiss to Beatrice’s clavicle, before replacing her head over Beatrice’s heart.

“You are prepared,” Beatrice stated firmly. 

“Mmm,” Ava hummed, nodding her head lightly.

Her hand-to-hand combat skills still needed improvement, but she could handle herself now thanks to the training she had been doing, as well as the halos ability to shift her perception which gave her more time to react to attacks. And, working with the halo had become natural for her. It still sometimes did things without her consciously controlling it, like portaling herself and Beatrice back to the farmhouse earlier that night, but she now had good control over the abilities she had discovered since bonding with the halo.

“I trust my team,” Ava breathed out a few seconds later, smiling when Beatrice pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

“And we all trust you,” Beatrice stated reassuringly, Ava’s spirit lifting as she realized that she believed it, and not just because Beatrice was saying it. 

Beatrice leaned in when Ava angled her head up to see her face, and kissed Ava softly. Ava shifted slightly to get a better angle, and then leaned down to kiss Beatrice, and as was usually the case when they were alone together and skin was available to the touch, the kisses soon became more heated and clothes were stripped off and haphazardly strewn across the floor around the bed.

“Hey, Bea,” Ava purred, as she settled astride Beatrice, gazing down at her as she watched her hands tease up Beatrice’s sides, just the promise of her touch enough to cause Beatrice’s nipples to tighten. 

“What?” Beatrice asked indulgently, knowing that she was about to be on the receiving end of some adorable doofery.

“You,” Ava whispered. “Sexy,” she declared. “Before me,” she continued, her eyes roaming over Beatrice’s mostly nude form appreciatively. “The ocular proof.”

“You,” Beatrice whispered, hands moving to Ava’s waist. “Doofus,” she declared, making Ava pout. “Yet, before me,” she continued, her eyes meeting Ava’s and holding them as a soft smile graced her lips. “My heart.”

Ava smiled down at her warmly.

“My very sexy heart,” Beatrice continued, running her hands appreciatively up Ava’s sides as Ava’s soft smile quickly transformed into an amused grin.

“How sexy of you to say so,” Ava murmured before leaning down to kiss Beatrice.

“As sexy as me eating gelato?” Beatrice asked cheekily.

Ava shook her head before moving her lips next to Beatrice’s ear.

“I was thinking more, sexy as me eating Bealato,” Ava began, leaning in even closer to whisper into Beatrice’s ear, “Melting in my mouth,” she purred, a wicked smile touching her lips when Beatrice’s breath hitched and her eyes fluttered closed, definitely imagining something pornographic, “and in my hands,” Ava breathed against Beatrice’s sensitive skin.

Beatrice’s eyes opened and her hand moved to the back of Ava’s neck, guiding Ava until Beatrice was able to arch up and capture Ava’s lips with her own, kissing her with an eager hunger that literally lit Ava up. 

Ava moaned hotly as she shifted, nudging at Beatrice’s thighs and then settling between them with a happy sigh after they parted for her.

It was time to recharge.

* * *

**T** he final phase of Operation Yeet Adriel began with luring him into a trap.

The OCS under Mother Superion had done the best they could to handle wraith possessions while Ava and the halo were persona non grata, but without a halo bearer to sight and guide the sister warriors, they had been forced to rely on luck in order to locate possessed individuals by the divinium in their weapons glowing as patrolled the streets. It was a slow and ineffective process, and as a result Mother Superion was able to convince Pope Alexander IX to call a truce with the halo bearer and her companions in order to get the wraith problem under control, and get some positive word of mouth for the church which the institution and the pope himself were in dire need of.

So, as Ava the sister warriors of the OCS began to clear out the worst wraith eruptions, Ava fought without her osnium vest, allowing the halos energy to discharge freely into the atmosphere where, theoretically, Adriel would eventually be able to scent it. Once he did, he would then find his way to them. 

The hook was in place, the line had been cast, and now all they had to do was wait for him to bite.

Adriel took the bait the week after Ava and her team had rejoined Mother Superion and the other sister warriors of the OCS. While they were in a southern town, shutting down a small infestation of possessions, Adriel appeared in the sky … in a new suit of armour.

_Fuck_ , Ava thought. _Fuckity, fuck-fuck_!

“We should have gone after those tarask bones,” Beatrice sighed upon seeing the armour, which Ava knew was ‘fuck, fuckity, fuck-fuck’ for classy people.

“It changes nothing.” 

Mother Superion’s voice came through the comms steady and commanding from the operations van she was overseeing things from. “We will proceed as planned,” she continued as Ava, her team, and the undercover sister warriors spread throughout the town square watched Adriel float to the ground.

“Team Nun-Chuck,” Mother Superion said, sighing. They never should have let Ava pick the team names. “Keep him distracted for as long as you can. The armour doesn’t cover everything. Aim for the weak spots. Tire and wound him as much as you can.”

Around her, Ava watched as Beatrice, Mary, Lilith and Camila nodded their heads in agreement. 

This wasn’t their first rodeo.

They knew what they were up against and what they had to do. 

“Team Junior Mints, focus on the crowd. In such close proximity to the halo and divinium it should be easy to identify possessed townspeople,” Mother Superion continued. “Ava, choose your moment carefully,” she concluded. “In this life or the next.”

“In this life or the next,” the Sisters repeated after Mother Superion before quickly moving into position.

_Trust your team, trust your team_ , Ava repeated to herself as she stayed on the sidelines of the fight, as the plan called for, attempting to avoid any kind of conflict that would draw on the halo’s power. It was difficult for her, especially with Beatrice in the eye of the storm, battling Adriel directly along with Lilith, Mary and Camila. 

Occasionally, Ava was forced to use her improved combat skills to aid one of the junior mints as they fought to free the possessed townsfolk from the wraiths inside of them without doing permanent damage to the host body, but as the battle raged on, Ava forced herself to keep to the plan and conserve the halo’s energy.

_Come on, come on, come on_ , Ava thought restlessly as she watched Lilith swing the cruciform sword, the blue blade shimmering in the moonlight.

_Fuck yeah_! Ava cheered as she watched Lilith deliver a devastating slice to the armourless backs of Adriel’s knees, drawing a pained and angry scream from him as his legs buckled and he fell to the ground.

“Shield Sisters,” Ava yelled, heart pounding as the halo began to faintly glow.

The ‘moment’ Mother Superion had ordered her to wait for was almost upon them. 

She knew it. 

She could feel it.

_Focus_ , Ava told herself as a group of junior mints formed a defensive circle around her. _Focus_.

In the gaps between the juniors' bodies, Ava could see Mary suddenly still, her gaze focused behind and to the left of the fiercest fighting. 

A spike of worry stabbed through Ava, and she followed Mary’s gaze.

Vincent.

_Fuckity fuck-fuck._

_Oh thank God._

Mary turned from Vincent, focusing on the fight once again, and just in time to avoid a blow to the back of her head.

Focus.

Ava reached into her pocket and took out an earbud which she quickly situated in her ear.

She was going to need all the help she could get.

_Ba boom. Ba boom. Ba boom._ The recording of the familiar and comforting sound of Beatrice’s heartbeat sounded lowly through the earbud, and almost immediately, Ava felt her breathing slow as her mind calmed.

Ava was aware of some of the junior sister warriors joining Team Nun-Chuck on the front lines as the number of wraith-possessed people dwindled.

Powerful as he was, the skill of the sister warriors and the increased number of attackers had Adriel on the defensive, which was exactly where they wanted him. 

Ava’s moment had arrived.

_Ba boom. Ba boom. Ba boom._

Beatrice’s heartbeat pulsed in her ear, strong and steady as Ava closed her eyes and the halo’s glow intensified.

_Ba boom. Ba boom. Ba boom._

The halo burned brighter still, and Ava’s consciousness … expanded.

Ava’s eyes flew open as the halo cast wings of light and she stepped forward, her Shield Sisters parting for her immediately, retreating from the light and heat emanating from her.

The air in the town square changed. It ionized. Became charged, practically crackling with energy.

_Ba boom. Ba boom. Ba boom._

Ava extended her hands and allowed her body to become a conduit for the halo’s energy, allowing it to flow over her and through her. Freeing it. Allowing the energy to guide her until it locked onto a particular set of vibrations and Ava devoted all of herself to holding onto that feeling of resonance for as long as possible.

Seconds, or minutes maybe, later, Ava’s mind became aware of her surroundings again, registering a familiar scent and the warm press of fingers wrapped around her hand, while a calloused thumb brushed against her cheek. 

_Beatrice._

The static electrifying the air began to fade.

_Beatrice._

The portal flickered.

_Beatrice._

The halos light faded.

“Beatrice,” Ava choked out, blinking rapidly a few times before swaying unsteadily on her feet.

“I’ve got you,” Beatrice whispered, wrapping her arms around Ava protectively.

“Did we get him?” Ava asked softly, her voice and body weak from the exertion of opening the portal and keeping it open until Beatrice had come to her.

“He was successfully yote,” Beatrice assured her as Ava snuggled into her body, smiling happily even as her eyes began to flutter closed.

“Good,” Ava mumbled against Beatrice’s chest. “Bye bitch,” she exhaled with satisfaction before her eyes began to slip shut. Ava was just able to consciously make out the amused huff of laughter Beatrice released upon hearing her words.

Ava's lips twitched up ever so slightly, pleased with herself as always for making Beatrice laugh. 

And then, wrapped securely in Beatrice’s strong and loving embrace, Ava passed out.

The End

Series to be concluded in Part 11!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for your patience with this one. I know the wait was longer than usual. The epilogue should be posted much quicker as I've already completed the outline.
> 
> Once again, I'd like to take a moment to say thank you, thank you, thank you, to all of you for your continued feedback, comments, and kudos. It honestly means the world to me, and has pushed me and energized me to take what was originally meant to be a stand alone story and turn it into a complete series with plot and everything!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this latest addition to the series! As always, thank you so much for reading. And comments are always welcome and very much appreciated!


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